Forest Exploration- Building the Foundations of Thought
“But, what do your kids learn?”………… A question which I have gotten over the years more than once. To answer it would be difficult, for the school of Waldorf education in early childhood is the school of evolution. “We allow the children to develop their motor skills which in turn grows the brain as humans have done for millennia.” Successfully done, I might add. This answer will seldom truly satisfy most people who will then dismiss what we do as good for children; they get t
Less is More for Young, Creative Minds
On a damp day in mid October, the play yard at Lakeside school is abuzz. As I arrive mid-day, I am greeted by a rosy-cheeked 5 year-old. Beads of moisture cling to her fuzzy hat and the wild stringy hair sticking out below. She informs me that there is one table left at their restaurant, and I better come quick if I want to get something to eat. I am led down to a cluster of stumps and logs where a group of children are busy with a variety of tasks—all jobs at the restaurant.
Pedagogy of Sledding
Soon the whole of the North Country will be a winter-wonderland. The Lakeside children and teachers will build an all-terrain park for winter activities. The children know just what to do. Donning helmets for safety, they trundle up to the launching pad with sled in hand. Going down by ones, by pairs, sled-loads, in ‘trains’ the children revel in the opportunity to sled. This all-terrain park also includes mounds for ‘seal sledding’, sledding down using ones snow suit as a s
